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TPB
"TPB" or The Pirate Bay is one of the world's largest file-sharing websites. The site makes it available for users to participate in the downloading of torrent files using the BitTorrent protocol. It was started in Sweden in 2003 by Gottfrid Svartholm and Fredrik Neij. How It Works Downloading torrent files is an effective way for users to download large files. Torrent files are extremely popular and account for a huge chunk of internet traffic in North America. Here is how torrent downloads differ from client-server and P2P downloads: Cient-Server downloads: Traditional client-server downloads are probably what most people are familiar with. Once you make a request to download a file online, your computer then directly contacts the server containing that file and copies it to your computer. The problem with this is that if many people are downloading the same file at the same time, the download will slow down a great deal. It’s like if you order a hamburger at a McDonalds, the more people there are ordering food at that McDonalds, the longer it will take to get your food. Peer-to-Peer (P2P) downloads: The classic peer-to-peer method is similar to the client-server download with a slight variation. Instead of contacting the server for a file request, your computer searches thousands of other computers (or “peers”) for that file and downloads it from one of them. This spreads out demands on bandwidth, creating faster downloads. Using the McDonalds analogy, this is like doing a search that directs you to the least busy Mcdonalds around you to get your hamburger. Torrent downloads: A torrent download is almost like peer-to-peer mixed with client-server downloads. When you request a file, your request goes to a server called a tracker that stores information of which computers connected to it are storing which files. It then directs your computer to different pieces of the file across the network and downloads the file in pieces from a host of different computers. This greatly increases the speed and dependability of downloads. If you were able place your hamburger order from your computer, which ordered the bun from one Mcdonalds, the patty from another, and the condiments from yet another, and had them sent to you and compiled on the spot, this would be similar to what torrent downloads are. Legal Issues Torrent file downloads have created an enormous network of file-sharing peers. It has made it easy for users to download movies, music, and software illegally for free. This is what created the great debate behind torrenting sites such as The Pirate Bay. TPB is one of the largest of these torrenting sites, making it possibly one of the largest websites in the world. Over the years they have come across many legal battles with music, movie, and software companies due to the amount of copyrighted material made freely available by way of The Pirate Bay. Trial of 2009: The most significant of the legal battles started in 2009 and was brought by a group of multiple intellectual rightsholders. The creators of TPB held to the fact that they are not responsible for the activity of their users and therefore were free of guilt. The prosecutor, on the other hand, claimed that they worked together to administer, host, and develop the site and thereby facilitated their users infringement of copyright law. On April 17, 2009 the verdict was announced that Peter Sunde, Fredrik Neij, Gottfrid Svartholm and Carl Lundström were guilty and sentenced to serve one year in prison and pay damages of 30 million SEK. Their lawyers appealed the verdict immediately and in November their prison time was shortened but the cost of their damages raised. Recent Legal Battles: The Pirate Bay has been the victim of even more legal battles which forced its ISP, Black Internet, to block service to TPB, raised more damage costs, and made it even harder for TPB to continue operating. Many countries have ordered that TPB be permanently blocked in their borders and companies such as Google , Microsoft , and Facebook have began to block any shared links leading to The Pirate Bay. Documentary A documentary film has been made about The Pirate Bay which highlights the trial and court proceedings which happened in 2009. The film has been made free to watch in true Pirate Bay fashion. Most of the information presented in this Wiki was gathered from the film. PirateBrowser On the occasion of The Pirate Bay's 10th anniversary in August 2013, the infamous torrent website released the PirateBrowser which aims to circumvent ISP blocking The Pirate Bay and other websites in various parts of the world. The browser is packages with Firefox and harnesses the TOR network to provide anonymous browsing and bypass cencorship.